Tag Archives: Horizon Zero Dawn

Horizon Zero Dawn is a PS4-exclusive action role playing game developed by Guerrilla Games, creators of the Killzone franchise. As Horizon Zero Dawn’s main protagonist Aloy, a skilled hunter, explore a vibrant and lush world inhabited by mysterious mechanized creatures. Embark on an emotional journey to unravel mysteries of tribal societies, ancient artifacts and advanced technologies that will determine the fate of this planet, and of life itself

The story telling is compelling, the characters deep and interesting, the voice acting credible, and the visuals stunning… then there’s the awesome game play!

The sub missions are interesting, fitting the feel of the story, game, and location. They don’t feel forced, and I want to complete them to rank up and unlock more skills and equipment. Ranking up feels natural as you’re playing a girl coming off age and exploring the World for the first time.

I’m just past the intro; the theme is set, the journey has begun, I expect the difficulty level to increase but I’m eager to see more of the stunning locations and vistas as I ride across the land, until I find Zoids to disassemble with my spear and bow.

This is where the game feels like The Last of Us. Using ‘focus’, what seems to be a web enabled device that scans and layers an augmented reality layer over the surroundings, you identify any animals, humans, or mechanical beasts, then work on taking them down.

Wildlife is easy; tag it then chase, whack it with your spear when near. For the more dangerous enemies you can snipe with your bow, aiming for vulnerable spots shown when in focus, or my favourite current method is to stalk and take them out silently.

Larger mettle beasts require different tactics with alternative weapons, and there seems to be enough of those to keep things mixed up.

Climbing around the terrain is reminiscent of Assassin’s Creed with defined routes up vertical paths, towers replaced by several story high Tallneck’s which once have been summited defog the surrounding map, highlighting locations of interest.

The signature Altair swan dive is replaced with an impressive rappelling descent.

I’m reminded of Skyrim by the detailed scenery, snowy tundra, the changing weather and day night cycle. But the biggest flash back to the Bethesda classic is the bow, Alloy’s primary ranged weapon. What’s really cool is that various arrows can be created on the fly, and the parts are found everywhere, so ammo conservation hasn’t been an issue… yet

Early days but this is a fun challenging title I’d recommend to anyoneRating: